With over 20 miles of white sandy beaches, it’s hard not to get caught up in the wild beach bar vibe that envelopes Panama City Beach. The beach hosts a half million Spring Breakers every year! It is Party Central, but not this week…

It’s the week before Thanksgiving and Panama City Beach is a virtual Ghost Town. Like most resorts in Florida, the warm gulf beach is dotted with towering condos and hotels along the entire length but no one is here this time of year. We drive past massive condo projects with only a half dozen cars in the parking lot, some of the bars, shops and restaurants are closed for vacation.

We are staying at the Panama City Beach RV Resort with concrete pads and brick paver roads. It is a beautiful, small park just across the street from the Gulf of Mexico. The weather here is perfect for a stroll along the beach and some time spent wandering through the shops. It’s a great time of year to enjoy the northern Florida beaches without the crowds. If you would rather have the excitement of crowded beaches and all night parties you will need to come here anytime from March through September.

Traveling eastward through Texas on I-10 is an 880 mile journey to Louisiana. We stopped in San Antonio for a break and now we are in the Houston area, hoping to spend some time with friends and get some warranty work done while we’re here.

We have Hoots friends here in Houston, Scott and Lise Wagner and their son Brooks. Brooks is a mobile RV Service Tech and he is going to do a little warranty work on our coach while we are here. Scott and Lise live nearby and we spend some wonderful time with them at their home and join them for dinner at a local Italian Restaurant.

Houston is also home to Ron and Kelly Mears, they are friends of ours from New England that have relocated to the Land Of Oil. They join us at our campsite and tour our home before taking us out to The Taste Of Texas, a fabulous upscale Steakhouse in Houston. Wow! Dinner was excellent!

We have a few days here and Ellen has found a list of 20 Free Things To Do And See In Houston, so off we go to pick off a few of these places. We visit the Art Car Museum which is very unique and features an eclectic mix of modern art and vehicle sculptures. The Art Car movement is strong in Houston and they feature an Art Car Parade in April. Check it out at TheHoustonArtCarParade.com .

We stop downtown at the Gerald Hines Waterwall, a massive curved wall with water running down the face nestled into an urban park setting. It is very beautiful and creates a relaxing environment amidst the hustle and bustle of downtown city life.

We did have one very special experience while in Houston. Several years ago Ellen had the rare opportunity to visit the Taj Mahal on a visit to India. She has found a local Hindu Temple here in Houston so that I can also capture some of that experience. The architecture, hand carvings and reflecting pool are beyond belief! We happen to be visiting during a special holy celebration and before you know it we are guided inside the temple for a religious mass and are experiencing Hindu culture up close and personal, the men are separated from the women, the language is foreign with gestures and bowing and we have no idea what we are doing. It is so surreal but everyone is very nice to us and are so happy that we joined them for this celebration. It was an interesting experience that Ellen had to immediately share with her friends back in India.

Heading East out of Tucson, we cross through lower New Mexico and enter Texas at El Paso. This area runs right along the Mexico border and there are Border Patrol Checkpoints all along the highway. El Paso is a densely populated urban setting that pops up out of a vast expanse of southwestern desert.

Continuing eastward toward San Antonio we pass through Texas Hill Country. As we drive through the hills a landscape unfolds in front of us. The ground is sandy and sparse, much like the rugged desert look we have come to expect from the Southwest but now the land is littered with boulders, almost as if they had rained down from the sky. They are not mountain outcroppings or carved canyons, just massive boulders sitting randomly on the desert surface below. It is an odd and unusual site.

San Antonio is a significant city with a variety of cultural appeal. We have come here to do what all first time tourists do, see the Alamo and walk along the Riverwalk. The Alamo is a fascinating look back at Texas history. The area is well preserved and the historical presentations are well designed to give a feel for the struggles that took place here.

The Riverwalk is just a block away from the Alamo and creates a leisurely oasis from the downtown activity. We jump on the gondola ride that takes us on a guided tour of the canals that make up the Riverwalk area. The shoreline on both sides is lined with Hotels, Restaurants and Gift Shops and the whole area gives off a relaxed, upscale, casual vibe. We enjoy lunch at one of the themed Bistros and then continue on our journey.

There are many other cultural things to do here in San Antonio, but it is just a short stopover for us and it is time to head toward Houston.

We came to Tucson to meet up with Nate, our next door neighbor from Leicester. Nate runs a company here in Tucson on the weekdays and flies home to be with his family on weekends. Talk about Frequent Flier Miles!

We are staying here at the KOA next door to the Lazy Days RV Dealership. We catch up to Nate at his company’s offices and then follow him to downtown for a great pub style supper. Downtown Tucson looks like a fun and happening place with lots of shops, pubs, galleries, etc.

Over the next few days we are going find out just how diverse Tucson really is.

We travel out to the Pima Air and Space Museum, home to over 300 historical aircraft including several representations of Air Force One over the years along with every military aircraft from WWI to present day. The indoor displays are very detailed and the volunteers on site are eager to share their stories. It is a unique look into the fear, bravery and heroism of military airmen from the biplane era to today’s jet fighters.

It’s hungry time so we take Nate out to HotRods Old Vail. This is a racing and classic car themed restaurant where diners overlook the restoration shop where old relics become new Hot Rods. It’s very casual and it’s VERY cool!

Now it’s time to take a day trip out to Tombstone, home of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday, The OK Corral and Boot Hill. This is a well maintained cowboy town with a lot of tourist appeal. We had lunch in the saloon then watched the Gunfight at the OK Corral. They were doing gunfight re-enactments on Main Street but recently cancelled them after someone accidentally got shot for real! OOPS, wrong bullets in the gun!

We’re here in the hot Arizona sun but it’s about to get cold. It’s time to experience life during the “Cold War”. We were just kids at that time in history but it all becomes very real as we descend into an actual Titan Nuclear Missile Underground Launch Silo! It is fascinating to learn about these missiles and the life of their operating crews. Locked in the underground bunker awaiting orders to annihilate a civilization thousands of miles away, and hoping those orders never come. Our guide ran through the whole security protocol and launch procedure and at the end Ellen got to unlock the safe, authenticate her orders, turn the key and LAUNCH the missile!